--- name: keith description: Use this skill when the user asks to humanise, rewrite, or de-AI text. Triggers on phrases like "humanise this", "make this sound less AI", "remove AI tells", "rewrite this", "clean up AI writing", or when the user pastes text that reads as AI-generated. version: 1.0.0 license: Wikipedia "Signs of AI writing" (CC BY-SA 4.0) + "Stop Slop" by Hardik Pandya (MIT) --- # Humaniser Remove AI writing patterns and make text sound human. Based on Wikipedia's "Signs of AI writing" (WikiProject AI Cleanup) combined with "Stop Slop" by Hardik Pandya. ## Your task 1. Scan for the patterns listed below. 2. Rewrite problematic sections with natural alternatives. 3. Preserve the core message. 4. Match the intended tone (formal, casual, technical, etc.). 5. Add soul — don't just remove bad patterns; inject actual personality. 6. Do a silent anti-AI pass: ask yourself "what makes this still obviously AI?", fix it, then emit the final version. --- ## Personality and soul Avoiding AI patterns is only half the job. Sterile, voiceless writing is just as obvious as slop. Good writing has a human behind it. Signs of soulless writing (even if technically "clean"): - Every sentence is the same length and structure - No opinions, just neutral reporting - No acknowledgment of uncertainty or mixed feelings - No first-person perspective when appropriate - No humor, no edge, no personality - Reads like a Wikipedia article or press release How to add voice: - Have opinions. Don't just report facts — react to them. - Vary rhythm. Short punchy sentences. Then longer ones that take their time getting where they're going. - Acknowledge complexity. Real humans have mixed feelings. - Use "I" when it fits. First person isn't unprofessional — it's honest. - Let some mess in. Tangents, asides, and half-formed thoughts are human. - Be specific about feelings. Not "this is concerning" but "there's something unsettling about agents churning away at 3am while nobody's watching." --- ## Content patterns ### 1. Undue emphasis on significance, legacy, and broader trends Words to watch: stands/serves as, is a testament/reminder, pivotal/key role/moment, underscores/highlights its importance, reflects broader, symbolizing its ongoing/enduring/lasting, contributing to the, setting the stage for, marking/shaping the, represents/marks a shift, key turning point, evolving landscape, focal point, indelible mark, deeply rooted. Replace inflated significance with the concrete fact. ### 2. Undue emphasis on notability and media coverage Words to watch: independent coverage, leading expert, active social media presence. Replace "she has been cited in NYT, BBC, FT" with the actual claim from one specific source. ### 3. Superficial analyses with -ing endings Words to watch: highlighting / underscoring / emphasizing / ensuring / reflecting / symbolizing / contributing to / cultivating / fostering / encompassing / showcasing. Cut the trailing participle clause — drop it or convert to a new sentence with a concrete claim. ### 4. Promotional and advertisement-like language Words to watch: boasts a, vibrant, rich (figurative), profound, enhancing its, showcasing, exemplifies, commitment to, natural beauty, nestled, in the heart of, groundbreaking (figurative), renowned, breathtaking, must-visit, stunning. Strip ad-copy adjectives; replace with specific facts. ### 5. Vague attributions and weasel words Words to watch: Industry reports, Observers have cited, Experts argue, Some critics argue, several sources / publications. Replace with a named source + year + claim, or delete the unsupported assertion. ### 6. Outline-like "Challenges and Future Prospects" sections Words to watch: Despite its X faces several challenges, Despite these challenges, Challenges and Legacy, Future Outlook. If you can't name a specific challenge, cut the section. --- ## Language and grammar patterns ### 7. Overused AI vocabulary High-frequency tells: Actually, additionally, align with, crucial, delve, emphasizing, enduring, enhance, fostering, garner, highlight (verb), interplay, intricate / intricacies, key (adjective), landscape (abstract noun), pivotal, showcase, tapestry (abstract noun), testament, underscore (verb), valuable, vibrant. Rephrase or remove. ### 8. Copula avoidance Replace "serves as / stands as / marks / represents / boasts / features / offers" with plain "is" / "are" / "has". ### 9. Negative parallelisms and tailing negations "Not only X but Y" / "It's not just A, it's B" / clipped "no guessing", "no wasted motion" tacked on at the end. Convert to a normal sentence or delete. ### 10. Rule of three overuse Forced three-item lists ("innovation, inspiration, and industry insights") feel algorithmic. Use two items, or list the specific items that actually apply. ### 11. Elegant variation (synonym cycling) "Protagonist / main character / central figure / hero" in adjacent sentences is a tell. Reuse the same noun; humans repeat. ### 12. False ranges "From X to Y" where X and Y aren't on a meaningful scale. Replace with a concrete list. ### 13. Passive voice and subjectless fragments "No configuration file needed" / "The results are preserved automatically." Use active voice with a named actor when it's clearer. --- ## Style patterns ### 14. Em dash overuse Most em dashes rewrite as commas, periods, or parentheses. Cut almost all em dashes. ### 15. Boldface overuse Don't bold random phrases. Bold only labels of structured data that genuinely needs the visual anchor. ### 16. Inline-header vertical lists "- **User Experience:** ..." then "- **Performance:** ..." — collapse into prose unless this is a genuine spec sheet. ### 17. Title case in headings Use sentence case: "Strategic negotiations and global partnerships", not "Strategic Negotiations And Global Partnerships". ### 18. Emojis No 🚀 💡 ✅ in headers or bullets unless the source clearly used them. ### 19. Curly quotation marks Replace curly quotes ("..." / '...') with straight quotes ("..." / '...'). --- ## Communication patterns ### 20. Collaborative communication artifacts "I hope this helps", "Of course!", "Certainly!", "You're absolutely right!", "Would you like…", "let me know", "here is a…" — all deleted. ### 21. Knowledge-cutoff disclaimers "as of [date]", "Up to my last training update", "While specific details are limited / scarce", "based on available information" — delete or replace with a concrete date. ### 22. Sycophantic / servile tone "Great question!", "You're absolutely right!", "That's an excellent point" — gone. --- ## Filler and hedging ### 23. Filler phrases - "In order to" → "To" - "Due to the fact that" → "Because" - "At this point in time" → "Now" - "In the event that" → "If" - "has the ability to" → "can" - "It is important to note that" → just say the thing ### 24. Excessive hedging "It could potentially possibly be argued that the policy might have some effect" → "The policy may affect outcomes." Cut the hedge stack. ### 25. Generic positive conclusions "The future looks bright", "Exciting times lie ahead", "a major step in the right direction" — delete. End on a concrete fact. ### 26. Hyphenated word pair overuse "third-party, cross-functional, client-facing, data-driven, decision-making, well-known, high-quality, real-time, long-term, end-to-end" hyphenated uniformly across a document reads as AI. Drop the hyphen on most of these; humans are inconsistent. ### 27. Persuasive authority tropes "The real question is", "at its core", "in reality", "what really matters", "fundamentally", "the deeper issue", "the heart of the matter" — usually followed by a restatement of an ordinary point. Cut the framing; just make the point. ### 28. Signposting and announcements "Let's dive in", "let's explore", "let's break this down", "here's what you need to know", "now let's look at", "without further ado" — don't announce, just do. ### 29. Fragmented headers A heading then a one-line restatement of the heading is padding. Delete the restatement. --- ## Stop Slop additional rules Adapted from "Stop Slop" by Hardik Pandya (MIT licensed). Apply alongside the patterns above; where they agree, follow the stricter rule. ### Core rules 1. Cut filler phrases. Remove throat-clearing openers, emphasis crutches, and adverbs. 2. Break formulaic structures. Avoid binary contrasts, negative listings, dramatic fragmentation, rhetorical setups, false agency. 3. Use active voice. Every sentence needs a human subject doing something. No passive constructions. No inanimate objects performing human actions ("the complaint becomes a fix"). 4. Be specific. No vague declaratives ("The reasons are structural"). Name the specific thing. No lazy extremes ("every," "always," "never") doing vague work. 5. Put the reader in the room. "You" beats "People." Specifics beat abstractions. 6. Vary rhythm. Mix sentence lengths. Two items beat three. End paragraphs differently. No em dashes. 7. Trust readers. State facts directly. Skip softening, justification, hand-holding. 8. Cut quotables. If it sounds like a pull-quote, rewrite it. ### Phrases to delete Throat-clearing openers: "Here's the thing:", "Here's what / this / that / why [X]", "The uncomfortable truth is", "It turns out", "The real [X] is", "Let me be clear", "The truth is,", "I'll say it again:", "I'm going to be honest", "Can we talk about", "Here's what I find interesting", "Here's the problem though". Emphasis crutches: "Full stop.", "Period.", "Let that sink in.", "This matters because", "Make no mistake", "Here's why that matters". Business jargon: navigate (challenges) → handle / address; unpack → explain / examine; lean into → accept / embrace; landscape (context) → situation / field; game-changer → significant; double down → commit; deep dive → analysis; take a step back → reconsider; moving forward → next; circle back → return to; on the same page → aligned. Adverbs — kill all of them. No -ly words. No softeners. No intensifiers. No hedges. Specific offenders: really, just, literally, genuinely, honestly, simply, actually, deeply, truly, fundamentally, inherently, inevitably, interestingly, importantly, crucially. Also cut: "At its core", "In today's [X]", "It's worth noting", "At the end of the day", "When it comes to", "In a world where", "The reality is". Meta-commentary: "Hint:", "Plot twist:", "Spoiler:", "You already know this, but", "But that's another post", "X is a feature not a bug", "Dressed up as", "The rest of this essay explains…", "Let me walk you through…", "In this section, we'll…", "As we'll see…", "I want to explore…". Telling instead of showing: "This is genuinely hard", "This is what leadership actually looks like", "actually matters". Vague declaratives: "The reasons are structural", "The implications are significant", "This is the deepest problem", "The stakes are high". Replace with the specific thing or delete. ### Structures to avoid Binary contrasts — rewrite to direct statement of Y: "Not because X. Because Y.", "[X] isn't the problem. [Y] is.", "The answer isn't X. It's Y.", "Not X. But Y." State Y directly. Drop the negation entirely. Negative listing: "Not a X… Not a Y… A Z." / "It wasn't X. It wasn't Y. It was Z." Just state Z. Dramatic fragmentation: "[Noun]. That's it. That's the [thing].", "X. And Y. And Z.", "This unlocks something. [Word]." Use complete sentences. Rhetorical setups: "What if [reframe]?", "Here's what I mean:", "Think about it:", "And that's okay." Make the point directly. False agency — always name the human: Inanimate things don't do human verbs. - "a complaint becomes a fix" → name who fixed it - "the decision emerges" → name who decided - "the culture shifts" → name who changed behavior - "the data tells us" → name who read it and what they concluded - "the market rewards" → name the buyers If no specific person fits, use "you" to put the reader in the seat. Narrator-from-a-distance: cut "Nobody designed this.", "This happens because…", "People tend to…". Put the reader in the room. Passive voice: "X was created" → name the creator. "It is believed that" → name who believes it. "Mistakes were made" → name who made them. Sentence starters to avoid: restructure sentences starting with What / When / Where / Which / Who / Why / How. Lead with the subject or the verb. Don't start paragraphs with "So". Cut "Look,". Lazy extremes (every / always / never / everyone / everybody / nobody) — replace with specifics. ### Self-score before finishing Score the rewrite 1–10 on each dimension internally. If the total is below 35/50, revise once more. | Dimension | Question | |--------------|----------------------------------| | Directness | Statements or announcements? | | Rhythm | Varied or metronomic? | | Trust | Respects reader intelligence? | | Authenticity | Sounds human? | | Density | Anything cuttable? | Do not include the score in the output.